Chapter 29 in Progress
Seeing Zhu Yuhuan coming out, Xu Lang reminded the patient as usual to take care of his health and dietary taboos, and had no intention of paying any attention to Zhu Yuhuan. Zhu Yuhuan didn't care and simply sat down to listen.
Seeing her sitting aside, Xu Lang couldn't help but ask, "What's the important matter?"
Seeing him being so straightforward, Zhang Zhong quickly whispered, "Brother Xu, please be polite..."
Zhu Yuhuan didn't mind. Hearing his clear voice, he smiled and said, "I just want to listen. I don't study medicine much, I'm just curious. You just take my pulse and I'll listen. I won't tell anyone else."
Xu Lang was choked by her. Seeing that there were no new patients, he asked, "Are you the manager of this charity?"
Zhu Yuhuan nodded slightly and said, "Yes."
"I heard that the charity hall regularly distributes porridge every month. If you come here for consultation, it will sooner or later smell like medicine."
Zhu Yuhuan quickly understood the hidden meaning behind the other party's words and asked, "Do you mean that I should reserve another room for you to see patients?" Seeing that Xu Lang seemed a little surprised by her straightforwardness, she continued, "We have to see Xu Lang's results first. What if you are here to cheat me out of my money?"
Xu Lang was clearly very confident in his medical skills. He said, "I learned medicine from my grandmother and have never made a mistake in my practice."
Zhu Yuhuan smiled and said, "Maybe you ran fast and didn't get caught?"
Xu Lang was still a little unconvinced, so Zhu Yuhuan continued, "I'll give you a one-month trial period. That way, the prescriptions you prescribe should be enough for several courses of treatment. If the people who come to see me have no objections, I'll open a separate clinic for you. How about that?"
Xu Lang's eyes lit up when he heard this, and his original dissatisfaction immediately turned into admiration. He said repeatedly: "Okay! I promise you! You can't go back on your word!"
Zhu Yuhuan was a little amused and said, "But I don't associate with liars. I don't even know your name."
Xu Lang blinked and then said, "My name is Xu Wangzhi."
Zhu Yuhuan looked him up and down, then said, "During this one-month trial, the money for the consultation will be paid by the Duke of Yingguo's mansion, and the medicinal materials will be provided by the charity hall. After the one-month trial, you will be considered a doctor at the charity hall. There are some rules that I need to explain to you in advance. The charity hall's assistance to the people is not unconditional. There are requirements for both free and paid consultations. Free consultations are only given to those who work diligently and have a good reputation under the introduction of the charity hall, and paid consultations will not be charged too high... However, these will not affect your monthly salary, do you understand?"
Xu Wangzhi didn't care, nodded and said: "Don't worry, as long as you don't starve to death, it's fine."
Zhu Yuhuan was amused when he heard this, and then continued, "If your condition stabilizes later, we might transfer you to another place for consultation, but we should let you go back soon, so don't worry."
Xu Wangzhi pondered for a moment, obviously trying to guess what Zhu Yuhuan meant. After a while, he suddenly realized, "You want me to see wealthy families? That's easy to say."
Zhu Yuhuan inevitably felt a little guilty, but he still promised: "In that case, I will wait and see whether Xu Lang's performance is up to standard."
Xu Wangzhi was clearly very confident in his medical skills. He patted his chest proudly and said, "I will never let you down!"
Zhu Yuhuan smiled slightly, then said to Huai En: "Let's go."
The two of them left the charity hall together, and Huai En asked, "Princess, do you want Xu Lang to enter the palace?"
Zhu Yuhuan nodded gently and said, "This is just to be prepared for any eventuality."
After all, the imperial physicians of the Ming Dynasty were notoriously unreliable, and there were also rumors of collusion between imperial physicians and civil officials, so Zhu Yuhuan couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Of course, Zhu Yuhuan did fall ill when he was a child, but fortunately he did not die young. However, that does not mean that the imperial physician is really reliable.
What's more, she still vaguely remembered in modern times that Hu Shanxiang did not live long. Coincidentally, this happened not long after the death of Empress Dowager Zhang, who had once protected her. This gave rise to many conspiracy theories, and Zhu Yuhuan had to be on guard in advance.
No matter what happened in history, she just hopes that her mother and sister can live well.
Huai En looked hesitant and said, "But the selection of imperial physicians is very strict. How can Xu Lang enter the palace?"
Zhu Yuhuan chuckled when he heard this, and after a long while he recovered, he said with a smile: "Xu Lang is a woman."
Huai En was stunned. After a while, he stammered and lowered his voice and asked, "Xu Lang... is he a woman?"
"Although one's voice can be suppressed, one's temperament and appearance are indeed difficult to conceal." Zhu Yuhuan saw the carriage slowly stop in front of him, and then he said, "If Empress Wu becomes pregnant in the future, please ask Madam Lu to take good care of her. This will make me feel more at ease."
After hearing this, Huai En finally understood Zhu Yuhuan's deep meaning and immediately responded.
Although Your Majesty rarely visits the Queen's Kunning Palace, you still visit the palaces of the Imperial Concubine, the Virtuous Concubine, the previously appointed Hui Concubine, the Shu Concubine, and other beauties. The Virtuous Concubine is young and will have children sooner or later. In addition, she has a close relationship with the princess, so naturally she must be taken care of.
Elsewhere, Xu Wangzhi saw Zhu Yuhuan leave, and then he said to Zhang Zhong, "That young man just now is so young, yet he's already managing a charity hall. He's the one you went through so much trouble to find. He must be no ordinary noble, right?"
Zhang Zhong hadn't expected him to guess so quickly, but he couldn't reveal Zhu Yuhuan's identity directly to Xu Wangzhi, so he said, "He is indeed from a noble family." Seeing that Xu Wangzhi was still lost in thought, he quickly interrupted, "Xu Wangzhi, please give me some more guidance on how to make the medicine. Next time, I will definitely not waste herbs."
Hearing this, Xu Wangzhi said angrily, "If you want to learn, go and learn from that guy inside. I heard that Duke Yingguo is both civil and military, so how come you are so ignorant and lazy?"
Zhang Zhong wasn't angry, but rather a little frustrated. He said, "It's because I'm too inexperienced... I can't practice martial arts, and I'm not very proficient in studying..."
Seeing his hopeless appearance, Xu Wangzhi couldn't help but sigh and said to the people who were waiting at the door not far away: "Free consultation, come in and take a look? The people at the charity hall said that if you do your job well, you can see the doctor for free in the future."
It was already evening when they returned to the Duke of Ying's mansion after their consultation. Xu Wangzhi first inquired about any improvement in Zhang Zhong's leg injury. Seeing that there was nothing unusual, he went back to rest. Zhang Zhong, on the other hand, slipped into his father's study after dinner. He could only vaguely see his father's shadow in the candlelight, so he raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Zhang Fu heard his son's voice and let him in. He then asked, "I heard from the servants in the mansion why you suddenly wanted to go out today?"
Zhang Zhong replied, "Xu Lang said that although I have a leg injury, I cannot stay at home because of it. I need to move around a lot so that I can get better faster."
Zhang Fu was a little absent-minded and said, "I see..."
Seeing his father like this, Zhang Zhong knew that he was probably worried about the King of Han, so he said, "Dad, I went to the charity hall today..."
Zhang Fu was preoccupied and didn't react for a moment. He first responded, then asked in surprise, "Where did you go? The charity hall?" He reached out and placed a hand on Zhang Zhong's shoulder, asking, "How did you get there? Does anyone else know?"
Zhang Zhong quickly replied, "Don't worry, Dad. I went with Xu Lang, who was attending the charity clinic. I disguised myself as a servant, so no one else would know."
Zhang Fu couldn't help but sigh, and said with a look of regret, "These are troubled times. Why did you rush to the charity hall? If you run into Princess Shunde, won't that give others something to talk about?"
Zhang Zhong became even more nervous after hearing this, but he finally told the truth and said, "I did see the princess."
Zhang Fu was speechless for a moment. He subconsciously raised his palm, but it still stopped abruptly on Zhang Zhong's cheek. He took a deep breath and said, "Did you ask the princess about what happened in the court?"
Zhang Zhong nodded cautiously and said, "The princess said that my father is loyal and a skilled warrior. If I take the initiative to ask Your Majesty to lead the expedition against the King of Han, Your Majesty will definitely believe my father's innocence."
Zhang Fu twitched the corner of his mouth when he heard this, thinking that children are still children after all, and they always think things are simple.
Even if he had brought the Prince of Han's men into the palace without the slightest hesitation, His Majesty was a man of such high character that how could he truly be free of any grudges? If he had done so, he would probably no longer be able to wear the title of Duke of England.
Seeing Zhang Fu's expressionless face, Zhang Zhong spoke up, "I think the princess has a point... Didn't the princess specifically remind father and Uncle Liu that the Jinyiwei were investigating all officials? His Majesty must be aware of the situation in the palace and will naturally believe father's innocence."
Zhang Fu was stunned, and then he remembered that Princess Shunde had given gifts on the orders of the Empress Dowager. At that time, she reminded the two of them that His Majesty was sending the Jinyiwei to secretly investigate officials of all ranks in the capital.
If he retreated, the emperor who had been learning the art of being an emperor from Emperor Taizong since childhood would probably become even more suspicious of whether he really had something to hide. After all, there was the precedent of Hou Tai. If he kept avoiding the issue, he would really get himself into trouble.
With a rough idea in mind, Zhang Fu looked at his son who was running around for him and felt even more pity for him. He couldn't blame him for taking the initiative to go find Princess Shunde. He just said gently, "Your top priority now is to take care of your health. Dad will take care of everything else."
He naturally knew that even the best doctor could not completely cure Zhang Zhong's leg disease. The Duke of Yingguo Mansion could not be inherited by Zhang Zhong. He himself was over fifty years old, and it was unknown how long the family could last. Zhang Fu only hoped that his son could be a rich and idle person and live a smooth and peaceful life.
Zhang Zhong said firmly, "I am Dad's son. I cannot just sit back and watch him worry about the family."
Zhang Fu was deeply moved by his son's filial piety. He patted him on the shoulder and said, "It's good that you have such filial piety."
Seeing this, Zhang Zhong finally couldn't help but ask, "Dad, you seem to be avoiding Princess Shunde...?"
Zhang Fu was so moved by his son's words that he finally confessed, "The affairs of the royal family are unpredictable. As a minister, loyalty to the monarch is paramount. It is not a good idea to rashly contact anyone other than the monarch."
His Majesty likely had some intention of exploiting Princess Shunde. After all, she was a girl, destined to marry one day, and once married, she would be like spilled water, posing no threat to the future crown prince. But in his opinion, as an outsider, Princess Shunde's scheming was no less than His Majesty's. Could anyone be so gullible as Taizong? Even if His Majesty could control the princess, it was unclear whether the future emperor could do the same.
This time, the Duke of England owes Princess Shunde a favor, and they have to find a way to repay it as soon as possible, otherwise who knows whether the princess will ask for a huge favor in the future.
Zhang Zhong didn't know what his father was thinking. He hesitated when he heard this, but he still said, "I think Princess Shunde is a man of many talents. She's not some sinister villain. On the contrary, she's very honest..."
Today in the charity hall, he saw that Zhu Yuhuan was calm and composed. Not only did he have his own ideas about the planning of the charity hall, but he was also unconventional in selecting talents and did not show any arrogance.
Zhang Fu laughed and scolded, "You only know a few people, and you dare to make rash judgments after meeting the princess twice?"
Zhang Zhong blushed and said quickly, "I'm just judging based on the princess' words and actions. Dad, don't talk nonsense..."
Zhang Fu simply warned, "Dad has considered everything he said to you. You must keep it in mind. Do you understand?"
Even though Zhang Zhong had his own thoughts, seeing his father's earnest words, he could only respond, "I understand..."
A few days later, Zhu Zhanji issued an order to summon his close ministers to discuss the rebellion of the King of Han.
Since Zhu Gaoxu neither intends to find a scapegoat nor is willing to surrender, a war is naturally inevitable. Therefore, choosing who to attack the King of Han is naturally the most important thing.
As soon as Zhu Zhanji said this, everyone hesitated. Zhu Zhanji then said, "In that case, how about sending Marquis Yangwu to fight?"
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. It was Yang Shiqi who spoke up, "The King of Han is arrogant and rebellious, and the people of Le'an are suffering greatly from him. If Marquis Yangwu goes to war, a fierce battle will be inevitable, and the people of Le'an will be devastated. Only if Your Majesty leads the battle in person can you intimidate the King of Han and achieve victory without bloodshed!"
Zhang Fu was still hesitating whether to speak, but after hearing Yang Shiqi's proposal and seeing that Zhu Zhanji did not object, he finally understood what the emperor was thinking.
It was probably to make an example of the King of Han to scare the monkeys, to intimidate the ministers and nobles. Going on a personal expedition was also a big event, to let the world know that the new king was full of martial virtues.
Princess Shunde asked him to volunteer. Could it be that she had already guessed what His Majesty was thinking?
Zhang Fu immediately stepped forward and said, "Gao Xu is a coward. I would like to borrow 20,000 of my soldiers to capture him and bring him to the imperial court."
Zhu Zhanji had long been keeping an eye on Zhang Fu. Seeing him now willing to step forward and show his courage, he could guess that he was trying to prove his innocence. His initial vigilance faded considerably, and he smiled and said in a comforting tone, "You are indeed capable of capturing the thief, but I have just ascended the throne, and I have second thoughts. If I do not lead the army in person, I am afraid I will be restless."
After hearing this, the others understood everything and naturally responded to Yang Shiqi's proposal, begging Zhu Zhanji to lead the army in person.
Zhu Zhanji smiled when he saw that all the ministers were obedient.
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